Barbara Benton, born Barbara Lynn Klene, began her life as a bright, hopeful UCLA premed student with dreams of a career in healing, perhaps as a veterinarian, but by 18, her path had taken a dramatic turn when she stepped into the world of modeling and walked onto the set of Playboy After Dark. There, she encountered Hugh Hefner, 42 at the time, who saw potential in her and began the process of reshaping her identity for his empire. Barbara Klene became Barb Benton, a transformation that was more than cosmetic—it was symbolic. Her ambitions were repurposed, her youth and beauty commodified, and she was molded into a product, co-hosting the show and appearing in Playboy covers throughout 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, and 1975. She was never a Playmate of the Month, but she became the living embodiment of Playboy’s idealized femininity, her body and image carefully crafted to embody the fantasy the empire sold.
